Enterprise
and Business Committee
Inquiry
into Town Centre Regeneration
Evidence from British Waterways
Enterprise and Business Committee
Inquiry into the regeneration of town centres
Evidence from British Waterways
September 2011
1. Introduction
1.1. British Waterways is a not-for-profit public corporation which cares for the network of canals, rivers, docks and reservoirs across Britain. It owns and manages 2,615 km of navigable inland waterways in the UK of which 75% are canals. It is currently accountable to the Department of the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs in England and Wales and to the Scottish Government (Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change) in Scotland.
1.2. British Waterways in Wales has a Wales Advisory Group, chaired by its Wales Board Member and Vice Chair John Bridgeman CBE TD, to assist it in responding to the needs and priorities of Wales. British Waterways also sponsors the Assembly Government All Party Waterways Group, which Nick Ramsay AM chairs, and contributes to the National Access Forum for Wales, the Heritage Environment Group and the Access to Inland Waters Round Table among other groups.
1.3. Subject to the passage of the Public Bodies Bill, the canals and rivers in the care of British Waterways in England and Wales will transfer to a new waterways charity in 2012. The grant currently received from Defra will then become a contract with the new waterways charity. Canals in Scotland were devolved to the Scottish Government in 1999 and will remain in the public sector.
1.4. The charity’s all Wales body, similar to the National Trust’s national committee, will take the place of the BW Wales Advisory Group. Positions within that body are expected to be advertised shortly. Entrusting the waterways of Wales into the new waterways charity offers the opportunity for a new and even stronger relationship with the Welsh Government.
1.5. The new charity will continue to work with a broad range of public, private and voluntary sector partners, as British Waterways does at present, to protect and find new uses for this nation's historic waterways.
1.6.
The
last decade has seen a widely acknowledged waterway
‘renaissance’ with canals being reinvented as agents of
rural, town and inner city regeneration whilst offering some of the
greenest and most accessible recreational and tourism facilities
available in the U.K.
1.7.
In
Wales the canals comprise all of one and part of a second World
Heritage Site. There are 219 listed structures in our
ownership in Wales. That industrial heritage also means they
are well represented in areas of deprivation.
2. British Waterways’ experience
2.1.
In
1989 British Waterways was given the powers to develop our property
dowry, trade it and reinvest the receipts back into the waterways
of the UK. Our dowry comprises:
· Legacy brownfield land inherited at the time of nationalisation;
· Legacy land in use for freight and other waterway purposes at the time of nationalisation but since taken out of such use; and
· Land transferred as dowry assets in connection with the transfer to BW of responsibility for waterway or dock infrastructure by other public bodies.
2.2.
That
property dowry now provides income that makes a significant
contribution to the continued maintenance of the waterways.
It will also now provide an endowment fund for the new waterways
charity.
2.3. British Waterways is non-profit distributing and all the income we earn is reinvested into the waterways. Prior to the recession BW had outperformed the IPD index over 5 consecutive years despite the make-up of its portfolio differing significantly both in sector weighting and individual assets. It has also outperformed the IPD Regeneration Index over period.
2.4.
Where
regeneration or renewal is taking place our influence ranges
from:
· BW itself delivering;
· Delivery through our partnerships and joint ventures;
· Working with third parties seeking a mutually beneficial investment in our property, for example as public realm, including works in kind and volunteering;
· Influencing masterplans and/or planning briefs;
· Influencing policy at a national, regional or local level and using our abilities as a neighbour and/or consultee;
· Providing a resource upon or through which others deliver regeneration, particularly social regeneration.
2.5.
Our
commercial activities often enable us to act as a bridge between
the public and private sectors. Prior to the recession we
calculated that our property based activities generated £50m
in public benefits per annum of which £15m were additional to
those that would have been delivered by the private sector (based
on providing public access to the waterside, taking full advantage
of the uplift in values enjoyed by waterside properties, quality of
life outcomes and that 20% of the schemes we are active in would
not otherwise have happened; a point accepted by the Treasury
during their Operational Efficiency Review in 2009).
2.6.
All of our existing property assets will be vested in the new
waterways charity for the benefit of our two nations.
3. What approaches have been followed to successfully deliver and finance the regeneration of town centres in Wales?
3.1.
` British
Waterway’s land holdings in Wales are limited. However
The Townscape Heritage Initiative, delivered by the Heritage
Lottery Fund in conjunction with Local Authorities, has been seen
to make an impact on the quality of premises and facilities in town
centres. An example is Cefn Mawr within the buffer zone of
the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Site. The
benefits have not just been physical as the programme has also
developed heritage skills and an awareness of and pride in the
cultural origins of the town within the local
community.
3.2.
In
parallel Cadw has been undertaking a Characterisation Study to
describe and explain the historic character of the town to give a
focus to local distinctiveness and to serve as a tool for the
sustainable management of the historic environment. This work
will be used to inform and shape the conservation and regeneration
of Cefn Mawr and the wider area. By recognizing that the
character is fundamental to local distinctiveness and pride of
place it will help to improve the quality of planning advice and
masterplans.
3.3.
Physical improvements can only ever be part of the
solution. Development of community capacity and aspiration
has to go hand in hand with those improvements as does promotion to
bring the changes to the attention of a wider audience.
3.4.
In
Cefn Mawr the community’s wish is to see their town’s
proximity to the tourism magnet of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
exploited as the catalyst for inward investment and jobs.
Development of the adjacent and now closed chemical works,
which also housed the Plas Kynaston foundry that created the
aqueduct, presents the opportunity to extend the canal from Trevor
to within a few minutes of the High Street. The canal would
create both a physical and perceptual (and intellectual) link with
the World Heritage Site bringing passing trade from visitors and a
new market for the existing pubs, shops and accommodation
providers. The waterfront would also drive higher values
allowing more carefully considered design to exploit the views
presented by the water.
3.5.
The
potential of Cefn Mawr and the World Heritage Site are of more than
local significance as they have the potential to act as a gateway
to North Wales and to build on complementary initiatives in North
Shropshire linking the destinations of Llanymynech, the historic
canal yard at Ellesmere, and Chirk within the World Heritage Site
itself.
3.6.
IWAC, in its report “Planning a future for the inland
waterways – a good practice guide”(2001) quoted the
example of the Milton Keynes Canal Basins and Pennyland where
English Partnerships aimed to stimulate developer interest using
the value added by a waterside location and/or basin to attract
housing developers. The benefits of both schemes were felt
immediately with properties selling at 20 – 35%
premium. Lessons included the appreciation of the development
potential and environmental benefits to be gained from waterside
regeneration, use of a design competition to enthuse the private
sector and to elicit attractive proposals, and the ability of
well-considered development to realise considerable value whilst
achieving a high quality design approach to the public realm and
providing resources for associated infrastructure works.
Other examples are in section 4 below.
3.7. A more local example of public domain being used to revitalise a declining town is Chepstow. In Chepstow public domain improvements were used to increase dwell times and reverse a rise in vacancy rates in the town’s premises. The “Chepstow High Street Regeneration Impact Assessment – Measuring Success” (Monmouthshire County Council Autumn 2006) http://admin.localgov.co.uk/his_localgov/view/images/uploaded/Image/05PED1.pdf noted that prior to the improvements to the public domain vacancy rates in the town were as high as 14% in 2001. By June 2006, just over a year after the works had been completed, the rate had dropped to 5.7%. Within the 50 businesses surveyed there was a net gain of 77 jobs.
3.8. Investment in the quality of public domain also sent out the message that the town was worth investing in. Of those 50 businesses just over half had invested in their business with just over half of those investing in improving their premises. That then further contributed to the presentation of the town.
3.9.
Visitors saw the town had more to offer than “just the
castle.” 86% of visitors were highly satisfied with the
way the town looked and 88% would recommend the town to friends and
family.
3.10.
The impact of the vibrancy of the local economy on local pride
and well-being should not be underestimated. Boarded up shops
and a run-down feel quickly lead to a downward spiral, whilst
freshly painted houses and busy shops lead to the opposite.
3.11. Further waterfront potential exists in Swansea (linking the Neath and Tennant Canals to SA1), Clydach, Neath, Newport, Cwmbran and Cefn Mawr following the example of Brecon where new basins were created as part of the development that created the theatre in the 90s.
4.
Are there lessons to be learned
from elsewhere?
4.1. ` Water
is part of the public domain but it is distinctive and sets a town
apart. Few towns have access to water and even fewer water
that can be animated to become a focus for public access and mixed
uses. Canals have the advantage of stable water levels,
unlike rivers, which can be incorporated into year round use. The
economic impact of good public domain – wet or dry - is well
researched, not just in terms of values but also dwell times in
towns. However it is important that land and water uses are
considered together so that they complement each other. Water
should not be considered as an edge, barrier or backdrop but as
part of the pubic domain.
4.2.
Towns
and cities across the UK, indeed across the World, have used water
as their unique selling point; the wow factor. Its use has
changed perceptions leading to significant inward investment.
Birmingham’s renaissance over the last 20 years, the
resurgence of Cardiff Bay and the private sector investment that
followed the completion of the Millennium Link in Scotland are all
examples of the way that water (canals and waterfront) has
succeeded in bringing in investment, building community confidence
and developing tourism.
4.3. Figures from the Millennium Link in Scotland are particularly impressive (Roger Tym & Partners Report (2008)) with the target of £100M investment and 3,420 jobs being comfortably exceeded by the actual delivery of £342M private sector investment and 5,183 jobs. MVA Consultancy (2010) mapped a parallel improvement in Scottish IMD scores in those areas where canal investment had taken place (North Glasgow is shown below).
4.4.
Case
studies for these and other schemes are available from British
Waterways. Scotland has probably been the most assiduous in
evaluating the outcomes of waterway investment in respect to the
Scottish Government’s objectives ranging from economic
outputs to health outcomes.
4.5. Birmingham City was probably the first British City to recognise the importance of its waterways. Faced with a decline in manufacturing, it sought a new economy derived from leisure and tourism and recognised that canals were its unique selling point. They are now the “face” of Birmingham exploited as a backdrop to visits by Presidents and showbiz celebrities alike.
4.6.
Water is now being exploited by cities as diverse as Falkirk and
Salford, Cardiff and Swansea in their regeneration proposals.
In England, Daventry and Swindon are seeking to introduce water
where they currently have none through canal extensions or
arms. Droitwich has just restored its canals and the project
and Wychavon DC were recently visited by the WLGA to learn from
their experience. Stroud in the South West is also in the
process of restoring its canals to help lift the town to the level
that would be expected given its transport links, landscape,
architecture and location within the Cotswolds. Currently it
suffers local and relative deprivation in its valleys arising from
a decline in manufacturing.
4.7.
Towns in rural areas can also enjoy the benefits of water.
The recently published “Montgomery Canal Economic
Development Study byResources for Change (2011)”
talked about maximising the value of local assets in a locally
appropriate and sustainable way to support a more resilient economy
with appropriate scale and “fit” to the rural
area. Rural economies typically deal with smaller amounts of
money; more dispersed labour; limited focus on single aspects of
the economy and a strong relationship with the urban populations
they serve. Many people have two jobs; economies are not
about big units generating employment, but about building
resilience into integrated systems. Resilience is often then
the focus rather than growth.
4.8.
That report also identified the difficulty in second guessing the
private sector’s response to market opportunities.
During the writing of the report a private sector investor came
forward with a proposal for a local food hall, holiday chalets,
marina, etc. which significantly increased the uplift in the number
of jobs predicted through interviews with existing businesses in
the area.
4.9.
Waterfront also adds value to homes. Garrod and Willis
(1993) and more recently (but unpublished) work carried out by
Lambert Smith Hampton (2003) showed an average uplift in
residential values of 18%. The latter study compared the
offer prices for a small sample and range of residential properties
both with and without proximity to water. Increased values
can make the difference between a regeneration scheme being viable
or not or it can contribute to the infrastructure.
4.10.
Evidence relating to commercial
property is more limited. Wood and Handley (1999)
investigated the impact of waterfront development in the Mersey
Basin and found that while there was a positive impact on property
values the uplift was again highest for residential property.
In terms of rental rates, the uplift was found to be 0 to15 per
cent for office accommodation, 0 to 25 per cent for leisure
developments and 10 to 40 per cent for residential property.
4.11.
Evidence from case studies completed
by Ecotec for British Waterways suggests that waterside commercial
property can generate a rental premium and be let more quickly than
accommodation in non-waterside locations but the main driver by far
is its overall location in the town/city, rather than anything to
do with water proximity.
4.12.
Active waterfronts with mixed use on
land and activity on water create the greatest benefits.
People can live, work and relax in the same space which creates
activity at all times of the day. It also allows people to
interact, building community cohesion particularly if space is left
for events and other activities and the waterspace is animated.
Cardiff Bay’s waterfront is a good example.
4.13.
Consideration of the way the land and
the water will work together is important to ensure they are
compatible, for example ensuring that there is sufficient privacy
for residents, that there is operational or maintenance access to
the water, etc. Guidance, particularly where heritage is key,
is offered in a joint British Waterways/English Heritage http://www.helm.org.uk/upload/pdf/HistWat.pdf.
Guidance specific to Wales is being put together currently by
British Waterways and Cadw working with CREW.
4.14.
Canals and other waterfronts often
provide a tangible link with the past – the historic
buildings and furniture; the patina arising from past uses and the
stories which create a “local sense of
belonging”. DCLG’s 2009 Guidance on Building a
Local Sense of Belonging (P16 on) recognises that the use of
historic assets can be a means of creating a connection with a
place and between adjacent communities creating a common thread or
understanding.
4.15.
While the environmental benefits of
waterways are self-evident, they can add much more, for example
they can be used use for sustainable transport – walking and
cycling – renewable energy for example as a heat sink or
source of hydro power; or as habitats either in their own right or
remnant habitats. Their social value, accrued by encouraging
healthy exercise or quality of life benefits, is equally
significant. Diagrams in the TCPA planning note on waterways
show the range of contributions that waterways can make: http://www.tcpa.org.uk/pages/inland-waterways.html
4.16.
The re-use of old buildings not only
adds character but also takes advantage of their entrained energy
which would be wasted if they are demolished and then replaced by
more steel and concrete..
4.17.
Heritage or waterway led
regeneration can appear expensive unless these broader non-market
benefits are included in their appraisal.
5.
How does the Welsh Government use
the levers at its disposal to assist in the regeneration of town
centres in Wales?
5.1.
In
Wales there are unprecedented opportunities to capitalise on the
increasing profile of waterways, the iconic structures exemplified
by the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and our magnificent seascape and
landscape. Within the next 12 months Wales’ navigable
waterways will pass to a new waterways charity and new
waterfront design guidance will be developed by British Waterways
and Cadw working with the Centre for Regeneration Excellence
Wales.
5.2.
Distinctiveness sets one town apart from another and improves its
competitive advantage. That distinctiveness isn’t just
provided by listed structures and protected landscapes but by the
rich patina and grain developed over hundreds of years of
development. Recognition and protection of that pattern in a
town helps the landscape make sense (feel right) to a visitor or
resident. Where a town has developed around natural entry
points, entry from elsewhere can jar.
5.3.
Maintaining that heritage is difficult. Restoring and finding
a new use for a historic building, while it may attract higher end
values, will require more thought than new build, and is likely to
cost more. For example specialist skills and materials will
be required, design will be bespoke, VAT is attracted by repairs
but not new build, rates are payable on empty buildings while new
uses are found, etc. Developers seeking a rapid turnaround
are also likely to be less interested in long term returns and the
overall sustainability of conserving the entrained energy in an old
building and the risks involved in innovative or contentious
proposals.
5.4.
The Welsh Government needs to provide both carrots and sticks to
encourage sustainable development and the retention of the
character of our towns and cities. Sticks through planning
policies that encourage an understanding of the character and
distinctiveness of towns prior to their development –
developers need to be fully aware of the obligations placed upon
them before they develop their business plans – and carrots
through mechanisms that recognise the higher costs of reusing old
buildings and allow those costs to be spread or deferred through,
say, Tax Increment Financing, Community Shares or guidance towards
other innovative funding mechanisms (section 11).
5.5.
Public support will often still be needed to put in place the
catalysts for inward investment (including canals) where the
returns are long term or, in the first instance, largely
non-market. That support should also recognise the long
timescales required to build local capacity so that new employment
opportunities can be fulfilled by the local population as they
arise. The aim should be to develop factory owners not
factory workers and to link people, place and their
prospects.
5.6.
Public procurement policies too should recognise the benefits of,
where practicable, employing local people and firms during the
implementation phase to ensure the optimum recycling and retention
of the investment.
6.
How are the interests and
activities of communities, businesses, local authorities and Welsh
Ministers identified and coordinated when developing and
implementing town centre regeneration projects?
6.1.
The projects we have been involved in
have all been partnership projects driven by a Board comprising the
key stakeholders. Community involvement and engagement has
been a major part of the process and often a requirement of the
funders.
6.2.
In the case of waterway reinstatement the neglect that is being
undone is often as a result of the canal ceasing to be relevant to
the local community and being seen as a hazard rather than a
resource.
6.3.
There has been a need to re-engage people’s interest through
participation in interpretation and educational activity,
volunteering and the provision of a constant flow of
information. A similar process is underway working with
Aqueducks in the Pontcysylltye Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage
Site. The community itself is developing an understanding and
therefore pride in the rich and deep history of their area,
including the now defunct chemical works. The works has been
a part of the community’s life for nearly 200 years and they
wish to see that recognised positively in the legacy left by its
redevelopment.
6.4. The opportunity has also been taken to use the major projects as a means of developing new skills including addressing the dearth of sustainable building skills and stimulate an interest in STEM subjects among young people.
7.
The roles the Welsh Government and
local authorities play in the regeneration of town centres.
7.1.
Regeneration is the process of enabling outcomes for people in
existing places through a process of renewal and
transformation. For the process to work the transformation
has to be both physical and perceptual; changing the way people
think about a place or react to a place; their emotional
response.
7.2.
In the current economic climate arguments for place over
development are going to be much harder to win.
7.3.
Regeneration takes time, normally 20 or 30 years, and it is
essential that there is a clear and compelling vision which will
transcend short term challenges. These challenges will
undoubtedly include how to argue for and maintain quality standards
in an economic downturn to maintain the long term vision of the
place.
7.4.
British Waterways has used Ecotec to examine its canal regeneration
schemes from 1996 onwards. They found that a number of common
themes emerged from those that were successful:
7.4.1.
There was a willingness of the public
sector agencies to take a broad and imaginative approach, to invest
to quicken the process, to stimulate private sector interest and to
use grant aid to help set the “vision.”
7.4.2.
The local authority had a strong
motivating role, it used planning powers to realize the
developments and it invested in transport infrastructure.
(IWAC(Planning a future for the inland waterways – a good
practice guide 2001) also found that a well-intentioned but
passive partnership was not a good recipe for success (5.4.page 38)
and that Local authorities are crucial where co-ordination and
partnership are needed to achieve results (5.13 page 40). As
Local authorities have the planning powers it is their support
which is critical.)
7.4.3.
Good design played a role in
converting old buildings to add value, using the canal to act as an
“integrating factor”, using environmental improvements
to act as a catalyst and opening up the waterway to act as a
transport (walking and cycling) and leisure corridor.
7.4.4.
These design actions created
“uplift” in the areas concerned and drew parts of the
overall schemes together.
7.5.
All of the canal based regeneration schemes included in this paper
were delivered by partnerships which included the local authorities
as key or sometimes lead partners. Inevitably there will be
challenges within the project and the leadership and determination
from the top of the authority (members and officers) gives their
staff the message that it was a case of how the problem was
to be solved and not whether it could be solved.
7.6.
The Welsh Government sponsored North Wales Cultural Action Plan has
enabled the feasibility of extending the Plas Kynaston Canal to be
examined. Visit Wales, Cadw, British Waterways and Wrexham
County Borough Council have worked in partnership with Arup as
consultants. However delivery of the canal is likely to
require further public support.
8.
The extent to which businesses and
communities are engaged with the public sector led town centre
regeneration projects or initiatives, and vice versa.
8.1.
Communities can benefit hugely from canal led regeneration.
In Maryhill near Glasgow on the Millennium Link results from
towpath and household surveys (mva consulting (2010)) found
that canal users agreed or strongly agreed that the canal enhances
the local physical/built environment (89%) and households thought
the presence of the canal made their neighbourhood a more
attractive place to live (78%). 81% of the users also said
the canal encouraged them to take more exercise. Across
Scotland’s central belt that alone was worth £6.4
million per annum in health savings.
8.2.
On the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and canal World Heritage site the ten
communities along the 11 miles have come together to form Aqueducks
– the Friends of the World Heritage Site. They now have
a role to play in helping to maintain and develop the site so that
it delivers economic benefits to their area. They are
fundraising, organizing events, learning new skills (environmental,
heritage and green badge) and working with partners to improve the
product.
8.3.
The Plas Kynaston Canal Group, based in Cefn Mawr, has a narrower
focus but has gained widespread support for their proposal to
extend the canal from Trevor to bring the economic benefits enjoyed
in Trevor, due to its proximity to the iconic aqueduct, into Cefn
Mawr itself. The town centre is currently part way through a
Townscape Heritage Initiative and the community believes that
bringing the canal to their community will not only drive better
quality design and distinctiveness in the adjacent development of
the redundant chemical works but also create a physical and
perceptual link between their town and the visitor focus; indeed
between the location of the aqueduct and its birth place, the
quarries and foundries of Cefn Mawr.
8.4. In Scotland through the strategic and inclusive regeneration and development of the canal corridors they have stimulated inward investment into local waterside communities through new commercial space and support for relocating and start-up businesses, created new jobs, driven the growth of national and regional tourism and delivered new homes. Businesses are now embracing that change.
8.5. To take just one example: in Kirkintilloch initial concerns about the reopening of the canal through the town and the disruption that would cause were transformed when traders saw the numbers attending the opening ceremony for the bridge in 2000 and then the canal in 2001.
8.6. As a consequence Kirkintilloch marketed itself as the Canal Capital of Scotland and began an annual canal festival. Various projects centred around the canal have since been completed including the Southbank Centre shown below and on the link: http://www.k-i.org.uk/projects/
